Trump gets worst economic ratings ever in new poll as Americans worry about affordability

Geoff Bennett:

Welcome to the "News Hour."

President Trump is set to address the nation tonight to tout the work of his administration and look ahead to his priorities in the new year.

Amna Nawaz:

The speech comes as economic concerns continue to be a top priority for Americans.

In a new PBS News/NPR/Marist poll, 57 percent of respondents say they disapprove of the job the president is doing on the economy; 36 percent think he's doing a good job. It's the lowest approval rating he's seen on the issue in either of his terms in office.

For more insights from the poll, I'm joined now by NPR senior political editor and correspondent Domenico Montanaro.

Good to see you.

Domenico Montanaro, Political Editor, NPR:

Hey, great to be with you.

Amna Nawaz:

Let's talk about the president's handling of the economy. Tell us about that drop in support and who exactly is losing confidence in the president.

Domenico Montanaro:

I mean, this is a big deal; 36 percent of people approve of the job that the president is doing when it comes to the economy. This is the lowest number that he's ever seen in the Marist poll as far as how he's handling the economy.

And this was a relative strength of his in the first — in his first term as president. And this is a big deal because he promised to bring down prices during the 2024 election. It's a big reason, you could argue, that a lot of voters crossed over to vote for him, in particular, Latino voters, who repeatedly said that prices, affordability were huge issues for them as a reason why they voted for Trump.

We have seen all year that they have slid away from him, whether it's been in special elections, the elections earlier in November. And in this poll, only 32 percent approve of the job that he's doing on the economy. It's exceedingly low. It's a really bad low point for this president.

And it's why you see him now starting to get out on the trail, trying to make the case on the economy, even though he continues to veer into culture issues like immigration.

Amna Nawaz:

You mentioned those special elections. We have seen affordability become the central message for Democrats so far. Heading into this next midterm election year, is that working? What do Americans think about the handling of the economy?

Domenico Montanaro:

Well, right here, now we're starting to see that Democrats have a four-point advantage when it comes to which party would be better to handle the economy, 37 to 33 percent.

That doesn't seem like a huge advantage, but traditionally Republicans have a bigger advantage on the economy than Democrats do. And it's a 20-point turnaround from 2022, when Republicans had a 16-point edge on this and, of course, in a midterm did much better than Democrats did overall.

Amna Nawaz:

That's a huge swing.

OK, on the issue of affordability, prices remain the number one concern for 45 percent of Americans. That tops all other issues like housing and tariffs and job security. But how do people view the economy personally right now?

Domenico Montanaro:

Yes. And prices obviously leap out as the biggest issue.

But when it comes to how people are feeling about this, 70 percent of people say that their area where they live is not affordable for average families. And that's up from 45 percent just this summer. So a lot of people are feeling the pinch, whether it's of prices or housing. Obviously, in neighborhoods, people are going to feel that, interest rates and all of that.

But that's a big number when seven in 10 people are saying that just their area is just simply not affordable. And, look, presidents get way more blame and credit than they deserve when it comes to the economy. But with this president, because of what he's done on tariffs, a lot of people are blaming him before that. And they're saying that that's led to an increase in these prices.

And it should put Republicans in a terrible vortex of being viewed negatively politically. We asked how the economy is working for you. Is it working well? Sixty-one percent of people said that it is not working well for them personally. And when you dig inside the numbers, there were huge divides by race, gender, age, and of course, on income.

Amna Nawaz:

We know tariffs, cost of living, prices are all an issue here. Health care is another big issue for people. We know those expanded subsidies under the Affordable Care Act are set to expire at the end of the month. We don't yet know what Congress will or can do on the issue.

But how confident are people that they can pay for their health insurance?

Domenico Montanaro:

Not very.

I mean, we saw a majority — and this really jumped out. A majority of people, 54 percent, said that they're concerned, that they're worried that in the next 12 months they won't be able to pay for needed health care or medical procedures. That's a very big number, especially considering millions of people in this country have big amounts of outstanding medical debt.

Some 20 million people have more than $250 a month that they owe, 14 million people more than $1,000 a month, according to a KFF-Peterson health tracker analysis. So millions of people are worried about their health care. We're also seeing in Congress right now these ACA subsidies, the Affordable Care Act subsidies, that could lapse.

And that could mean even higher health care for a lot of people who buy premiums on the Obamacare exchanges.

Amna Nawaz:

Setting aside how they see it personally, how do Americans feel about the overall economy right now?

Domenico Montanaro:

They don't see it very well at all. It's just the same theme, I feel like, throughout, with everything. People have a very dim outlook of the economy.

A majority of people are concerned about what is going to come for the world in 2026; 57 percent said that; 63 percent say that the country is off on the wrong track. And just a lot of people feel like they're not able to get by right now; 70 percent of people said that their income either exceeds or matches what their expenses are; 24 percent of people, a quarter of people in our poll said that their expenses exceed their income.

That means, if you calculate that out, some 46 million people in this country are going month a month accruing debt.

Amna Nawaz:

Some striking numbers in the poll. Full results are online.

Domenico Montanaro, always great to see you.

Domenico Montanaro:

You got it.